Disappearance of Windows 11 Taskbar Icons after Switching Virtual Desktops

Anonymous
2023-11-24T09:01:51+00:00

Windows 11 22H2
In Windows 11's built-in virtual desktop feature, there is a high probability that icons of active applications on the current desktop may not be displayed when switching between different virtual desktops. The icons only appear when I click on the respective application. I have attempted to resolve the issue through restarts and using Sfc and Dism for repairs, but the problem persists. An essential configuration to note is that the taskbar is set to display windows only from the current desktop.

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Performance and system failures

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  1. Anonymous
    2023-12-06T11:54:58+00:00

    Ditto.

    I noticed if I move the icon a little then it reappears (click/drag), but this is more annoying than helpful.

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  2. Anonymous
    2023-12-06T10:13:26+00:00

    Same here, though a workaround is to minimize and maximize the app with missing icon. That makes the icon re-appear. But even that doesn't work if one has switched virtual desktops and uses multiple monitors with one app being shown on the second monitor only. In that case, minimizing and maximizing doesn't restore the icon in the taskbar of the first monitor. Instead, one needs to move the app window to the first monitor, minimize+maximize to restore the icon and move the app-window back to the second monitor.

    I'm pretty often surprised how these very basic things get broken in Windows. Nobody of MS's own users seems to use such basic things, even though virtual desktops were introduced as a main feature of Windows 8 or 10.

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  3. Anonymous
    2023-12-05T14:37:54+00:00

    I'm also experiencing this issue.

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-12-04T18:57:56+00:00

    Came here looking for a solution to this. Glad to see I am not the only one, I thought I was going crazy. Too bad this hasn't been addressed yet...

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  5. Anonymous
    2023-12-01T13:54:28+00:00

    Image

    Same version of update (KB5032190), same issue.
    It is totally random if or which icons are visible. Reshuffle at every switch of virtual desktops. Sometimes all are there, sometimes even none.

    However, when clicking on the icon in the taskbar to minimize the window, that specific icon reappears.
    I spend a meaningful amount of time, clicking invisible icons on a daily basis...

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